The Nigeria Red Cross Society has launched its intervention on Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) in nine northern states, targeting one million affected persons in 170,000 households. 

  The organisation lamented the increasing malnutrition in children under five years in the region, adding that insecurity was a major contributor. It further expressed fear that delayed action could lead to food insecurity.

  In North-Central, the global body has selected Benue and Niger states, while Katsina, Sokoto and Zamfara were picked in the North-West, and Borno, Adamawa, Taraba and Yobe are benefiting in the North-East. The programme, according to the organisation, would run for one year. 

    Speaking at the launch in Bauchi over the weekend, the National President of the Nigeria Red Cross Society, Prince Oluyemisi Adetayo Adeaga, explained that the project was to contribute to the reduction of mortality and morbidity among children and women suffering from acute malnutrition.

  He said: “Our vision is to strengthen and scale up community management of acute malnutrition, including active case findings and referrals. Promote behavioural change through nutrition education, awareness raising, improved feeding practices, and overall hygiene promotion.

  “Strengthening protection efforts, with particular focus on women, girls, and children, as well as the inclusion of marginalised populations.” Represented by the National Disaster Adviser, Dr Babale Adamu, the national president stated: “We are talking about food insecurity, something that is devastating, a catastrophe, that will be able to affect all your food in your own community.

  “What will be in our own domain? We can’t tell. This is a huge malignancy that can occur. And if you look at it, you can see that there is a looming drought. A looming one. Almost all parts of Nigeria have this tendency of drought.”

  The Acting Director of Health and Care Department, Dr Aminu Abdullahi, added: “Malnutrition is an emergency in Nigeria. Based on that, a lot of us launched aid to the International Federation of Red Cross Red Crescent to see how we can support the government. As you are all aware, the Nigeria Red Cross Society is just an auxiliary of the government.”

  Representatives of the states, in their various goodwill messages, commended the Red Cross Society for taking the initiatives to join the fight against malnutrition in under five children. 

  IN a related development, a non-governmental organisation, the Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) Youth Corps, has mobilised women and youth to sensitise communities in Bauchi State on access to quality health care delivery and addressing challenges that are contributing to prevalence of malaria.

    A Co-Team Lead, Giving Promise, while speaking yesterday at Miri Primary Health Care facility, lamented the malaria burden in the country, noting that the nation accounts for the largest cases of the scourge, and that the unsavoury development poses a huge impediment to attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. 

    He said the organisation discovered that married women needed consent of their husbands before accessing health care for themselves and their children, which perhaps, contributes to medical emergencies.

  “Many of the women confirmed that it is culturally accepted,” Promise added.  He said the exercise, which is under the Gender Equality Project, being supported by The Global Fund and African Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA), is to entrench accountability in health services – especially malaria – and to drive female-led advocacy.

    “Basically, we are engaging the community stakeholders to know their challenges, the bottlenecks and barriers in accessing health care services,” he explained.